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In the south of Lanzarote is one of the most popular beaches of the island, Papagayo, a cove of white sand, reduced size and great beauty. In the shape of a bay or shell (some locals prefer to call it the latter), Papagayo wins you over with its crystal clear, emerald green water which remains still all day long just like in a swimming pool. It’s perfect for taking up snorkeling and for enjoying the beauty of its depths or for letting the children splash about without having to worry.

In the centre of Lanzarote, next to the roundabout just outside San Bartolomé is the Casa Museo del Campesino (House museum of the peasant farmer). Designed by César Manrique, it is inspired by the typical architecture of Lanzarote with its bright white walls. Its Monument to Fertility, standing at 15 metres tall and braving the winds, grabs everyone’s attention as they go by. Inside the museum itself, the visitor will discover the secrets of local handcrafts, traditions and the way of life of farmers on the island.

Every year thousands of people come to visit this natural wonder. The 1,400 metre-high plain bisected by the Camino de la Virgen walking trail which is famous for a festival, the Descent of the Virgen of the Kings, that takes place during the first Saturday in July once every four years. The Virgin is the patron saint of the island and during the festival an image of the holy figure is moved from a religious sanctuary in La Dehese to Villa de Valverde where it remains for a month. Half way along the path people stop for a party in which six of the local towns get together for traditional dance and celebratory family meals on special tablecloths.

The Tibataje Special Nature Reserve, located in the western part of the island of El Hierro, is made up of marine rocks and a large mountain ridge, which rises gradually from sea level and reaches an altitude of just over 1,000 metres. Its slopes bear witness to the coastal erosion processes that caused the coastline to recede, forming part of a rugged landscape of extraordinary biological and scenic value. It is a superb refuge for seabirds and a nesting site for a number of protected species.

The Frontera Rural Park is a large area where nature and rural tourism are combined in the youngest of the Canary Islands. El Hierro is a Unesco Biosphere Reserve and at 268 square kilometres is the most western and southern of the Canary Islands. It’s also the point where, centuries ago, the world ended as far as the European cartographers were concerned. The southern and western part of the island is a rural tourism idyll: Frontera Rural Park, where man and nature still co-exist in peace.

The Mencáfete Integral Nature Reserve is located in the west of the island of El Hierro, within the Frontera Rural Park and very close to Sabinosa. The natural features found here make it a place of particular interest for nature enthusiasts, from the cabezón herreño (a plant species typical of El Hierro’s Monteverde and laurel forest) to its humid juniper woodland and Monteverde Herreño. The caves hidden among the laurel forest provide shelter for bats and wildcats.

The protected landscape of Ventejís, one of the most prized natural areas of El Hierro, lies within the municipal area of Valverde. The location is sacred to the Bimbaches – aboriginal people of El Hierro – because of the presence of a special Garoé tree. In this 1,143-hectare-wide rural landscape there are many dry-stone walls and buildings that typify the traditional El Hierro construction style.

The Lomo Negro I Lookout Point offers a spectacular view . From here we can observe the colorful layers of the steep walls towards the sea. The different colors come from various types of eruptions, so the ochre-colored rocks were formed by the magma coming in contact with water.

The west of the island of El Hierro was known as the ‘end of the world’ in ancient European maps. The Bascos Viewpoint is the perfect vantage point to contemplate this rugged landscape, which has been designated a Biosphere Reserve by Unesco. Its location on the top of an imposing cliff allows it to dominate the whole of the El Golfo valley, a dramatic rift valley 15 kilometres wide and up to 1,500 metres deep, caused a prehistoric landslide. On a clear day the island of La Palma is visible above the blue Atlantic.